CME expands oil-price limits on sharp selloff

LauraMandaro

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- The CME Group has expanded its limits on how far oil can rise or fall for the rest of Thursday's electronic trading session, which ends at 5:15 p.m. Eastern, said CME
CME, -0.96%
spokesman Chris Grams. Oil futures typically have a $10 limit on how far they can rise or fall in one session. That's been expanded to a $20 limit above or below the prior day's settlement, with the expansion triggered by the rapid freefall in oil futures during the last hour of trading, when limits are removed. In particular, it was the drop in heating-oil futures to their limit of 25 cents that prompted the exchange's move, he added Oil futures for June delivery
clm11
ended Thursday's floor session off $9.44, or 8.6%, at $99.80 a barrel. They fell further in electronic trading, sinking below $99 a barrel. Heating-oil futures
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fell 26 cents, or 8.2%, to $2.89 a gallon. [Updates to add heating-oil futures limit.]

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